Megan Massacre and ‘Ink Master’ stars will tattoo at Sacramento’s top convention
Sacramento’s premier tattoo convention, the Capitol City Classic, is returning for its fifth year running, this time bigger than ever before.
This convention brings hundreds of tattoo artists, including some names inked into industry legend, to Sacramento for a weekend full of art and community. Britton McFetridge, CEO of the convention and owner of Royal Peacock Tattoo Parlor in Sacramento, said the relatively young tattoo show is expanding its offerings from previous years as it enters its milestone fifth year.
“(We are) just trying to make a really cool event for Sacramento and Northern California,” McFetridge said.
This year’s tattoo show will run Friday through Sunday, hosted this time at a venue in Arden Arcade.
Here’s what is planned for the 2026 Capitol City Classic convention.
Bigger venue, new activities at the Capitol City Classic
McFetridge said he and his team were motivated to expand the show so convention-goers could enjoy a nicer experience, with more activities and a more intimate vibe.
The Capitol City Classic convention launched in May 2022 with more than 200 global tattoo artists participating. McFetridge said he was inspired by a previous long-running tattoo show in the San Francisco area, the Bay Area Convention of Tattoo Arts.
“We brought that show back with a whole different deal,” he said. “That show was their thing, but we wanted something in Northern California and keep it going with the same level of intensity (as the San Francisco convention had) with elite artists and elite tattooing.”
For its first four years, the show was held at the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in downtown Sacramento, but it will move this year to the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Sacramento, 2001 Point West Way in Arden Arcade.
In addition to the move, the event’s general structure will also change, according to McFetridge. Where the convention once focused exclusively on tattooing, it will now feature vendors, food trucks, a car show and other family-suitable entertainment.
“If you go (to a convention) with a friend who wants to get tattooed ... it’s like watching paint dry, you can only walk around the hall so many times,” he said. “Now it’s open with everything else, and there’s music, cars to look at and all this different stuff.”
Though many of the additions will be present throughout the whole weekend, Saturday will have the most diverse set of programming.
“Saturday is the car show and a pin-up contest,” McFetridge said. “We also have some Aztec dancers that are coming out ... We wanted to make an environment where people would go for the whole weekend, stay at the hotel and just have a blast.”
McFetridge said each day will end with tattoo contests, with artists winning a hand-painted plate trophy made by McFetridge, while the top winners of the “Best in Day” and “Best in Show” competitions earn extra prizes.
Major stars will tattoo at Sacramento’s convention
Roughly 140 artists from across the globe and spanning the breadth of tattoo styles will be inking skin at the DoubleTree hotel during the convention weekend.
Though this is much lower than previous convention weekends hosting upward of 300 artists, McFetridge said this was an intentional choice given the new, smaller venue.
One of the most hotly anticipated names for this year’s convention is one of Sacramento’s newest resident tattooists: celebrity artist Megan Massacre, real name Megan Woznicki.
Woznicki, best known for her time on reality shows “NY Ink,” “Bondi Ink Tattoo Crew,” and “America’s Worst Tattoos,” as well as her highly successful Grit N Glory tattoo studio in New York City, moved to Sacramento in April and began working with McFetridge at Royal Peacock.
“It’s really cool because she’s like one of the most prominent female tattoo artists in the world,” McFetridge said. “She’s totally into (the Capitol City Classic), she wants to help us out as much as possible.”
Among the other stars of the show are Chris Nunez, Nikko Hurtado and Tommy Montoya, all known for their time on popular tattoo shows including “Ink Master,” “NY Ink” and LA Ink.” A full list of tattoo artists participating in this year’s Capitol City Classic is available on the convention’s website.
Ticket prices
Tickets for the Capitol City Classic are available online until the convention begins, and they will remain on sale in-person throughout the weekend. General admission tickets for guests ages 13 and up cost $40 plus fees for a single-day or $100 plus fees for all three days. Kids ages 12 and under get in for free, McFetridge said. (It’s worth noting: under California law, one must be 18 or older to get a tattoo).
Attendees who are looking to enter the convention earlier than the public to snag a coveted time slot with the most famous artists can purchase VIP tickets, which come with swag bags and entry 30 minutes prior to general admission. The VIP pass costs $140 plus fees for all three days.
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